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Silver Rathalos Ecology
Disclaimer: This is merely a plausible explanation for the monster(s) in this article, and should not be considered canon. In-Game Information (Processing Information) Taxonomy An extremely rare subspecies of Rathalos, Silver Rathalos are something of a cryptic, only occasionally spotted at the Ancient Tower. The exact cause of their coloration is unknown, although current theories include age, metal consumption, and genetic rarity. It could also possibly be age-related pigment loss. Habitat Range So far Silver Rathalos have only been spotted at the Ancient Tower, which may suggest that a certain factor in the environment causes Rathalos to become silver, but its safe to assume they could easily survive in other Rathalos habitats such as the jungle or forest. Like other Rathalos breeds, Silver's cold-blooded nature makes survival in the snowy mountains near impossible, due to lack of sufficient insulation. It's still unkown what connection the Ancient Tower has to Silver Rathalos, and even though it serves as a sub-par nesting sight and poor hunting ground (although it could survive by preying on the numerous Remobras and Aptonoth that inhabit the tower). Silver Rathalos appear drawn to the Tower as if by instinct. This is all rampant speculation though, and unless further steps are taken to observe Silver Rathalos, the answer to this question will forever remain a mystery. Ecological Niche Dominant predator, Silver Rathalos are much tougher than any lesser Rathalos breed. They prey on anything smaller than themselves. Silver Rathalos often control huge amounts of territory, even by flying wyvern standards, and will attempt to kill any other predatory wyvern or even an elder dragon (e.g. Kirin) that enters their domain. They are known to be much more of a foe than the other Rathalos or their counterparts like the Gold Rathian. Biological Adaptations Silver Rathalos' most prominant trait is its obvious silver coating. It's scales are far tougher than those of other Rathalos' sub-species, but it is still uncertain what causes this transformation. The most probable theory is that Rathalos scales harden and lose coloration with age. Other theories include genetic rarity: similar to albinoism, certain ores in the creatures diet, or even environmental conditions when the creature was incubating. Oddly enough, Silver Rathalos are far weaker to thunder than their usual weakness to dragon. The creatures wings are particularly sensitive. This weakness to electricity is sometimes taken as evidence that Silver Rathalos possesses a unique metal shell similar to Kushala Daora's, causing its body to become more conductive to electricity. Continuing on, Silver Rathalos shares all the traits of other Rathalos: spiked wings, poison claws, fire breath. Behavior Silver Rathalos is much more dangerous than standard Rathalos breeds. He prefers aerial attacks to ground based ones. He will frequently barrage hunters with his triple fireball and skyclaw attacks. When on ground, Silver Rathalos tends to use far more tail whips than bites and will charge hunters less frequently. Silver Rathalos also appears to go into a state of rage more often than his red or blue counterparts. Category:Monster Ecology